Ibadan – The Nigeria’s High Commissioner to Ghana, Mr Oluseyi Onafowokan, has described the high rate at which some Nigerians send their wards to universities in Ghana as disheartening.
Onafowokan said this in a keynote address delivered at the 6th Annual Ibadan Sustainable Development Summit (ISDS) held at the University of Ibadan on Monday.
According to him, Nigerian government should support the education sector by providing the adequate facilities needed in the universities.
“By so doing, other countries in Africa can also send their wards to study in our country,” Onafowokan said.
Onafowokan, who said some universities in Ghana do not have enough facilities to accommodate enough indigenous students, called on parents to visits the institutions before sending their wards there.
“I am surprised that Nigerians send their wards outside the country to study when we have great universities over here in Nigeria that can provide far better quality education to students,” he said.
Onafowokan, a former Director of Foreign Service Academy, attributed lack of government concern for education as the basic reason why Nigerians send their wards to other African countries for better education.
The ambassador, who said that he had visited other institutions in Africa, stressed that Nigerian educational system could be better if the government made it more attractive to foreigners.
“I want the present government to review the yearly budget allocated to education sector and see what could be done to address its deploring state,” Onafowokan said.
He however blamed past administrations for neglecting education and doing nothing to help the system, “instead they dwelt on personal gains rather than communal benefits”.
“Past administrations focus only on their needs and forgot that there’s a need to help the nation.
“They neglect the education sector but send their own ward to best of schools in Europe and America, which is bad,” he said.
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He appealed to the Buhari-led administration to fund federal universities more than other administrations did and to review the pay of academia. (NAN)